Debt, Networks and Reciprocity: Undocumented Migration from Fujian to Japan
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Volume 8 | Issue 26 | Number 1 | Article ID 3377 | Jun 28, 2010 The Asia-Pacific Journal | Japan Focus Debt, Networks and Reciprocity: Undocumented Migration from Fujian to Japan Gracia Liu-Farrer Debt, Networks and Reciprocity: Fuzhou City and its surrounding cities and Undocumented Migration fromcounties are reputed to have sent out large 1 numbers of international migrants. The map is Fujian to Japan a modified version of itsoriginal map in Chinese. For more detailed information on the Gracia Liu-Farrer location of Fujian, please refer to Google Map. Abstract Taiwan fears Pingtan, Fujian, the coastal province in Southeast China, Americafears Tingjiang, is where a large number of overseas Chinese called home. After widely publicized tragic Japan fears Fuqing, events such as the Golden Venture and Dover incidents, the name Fujian has in recent Britainfears Changle, decades become associated with clandestine 2 border entry. This article examines the causes and the whole world fears Fujian. and contexts of undocumented migration from Contemporary Undocumented Migration Fujian to Japan. It highlights the unique from Fujian to Japan characteristics of undocumented migration into Japan: debt-driven migration and network- Fujian, the coastal province in Southeast China, induced visa overstaying. It also explores the is where a large number of overseas Chinese tradition- and reciprocity-oriented ethical call home. After widely publicized tragic events frameworks within which Fujian undocumented such as Golden Venture and Dover incidents, in migrants justify their behavior. which dozens of Chinese immigrants died, the name Fujian has in recent decades been associated with clandestine border entry. As the popular saying above indicates, Japan is also considered a prominent destination for Fujian undocumented migrants, especially from the area around the town of Fuqing. In 2009, over six hundred thousand Chinese nationals lived in Japan, making up nearly 30 percent of all foreign residents in this country. While being the largest legal foreign population, the Chinese are also possibly the largest undocumented migrant group. The official data lists the Chinese visa overstayers in 2009 to be 18,365, behind the 24,198 1 8 | 26 | 1 APJ | JF Koreans.3 However, the number does not tell us all were from Fujian.4 Since the mid-1990s, the how many Chinese entered Japan clandestinely number of apprehended clandestine entrants through human trafficking. Ministry of Justice from China has exceeded one thousand every (2009) data show that among people who were year. A fifth of Fujian immigrants sampled in refused border entry in 2008, a third of them my survey entered without legal status, while were from China. no other region reported clandestine entrants (Liu-Farrer 2008). Fujian migrants are likely to be the single largest group of undocumented ChineseHowever, Japan is no easy country for migrants in Japan. First, among visaundocumented migrants. Although the overstayers, a large number of ChineseJapanese government has been more immigrants who became undocumented were welcoming toward skilled workers in recent from areas around the capital city of Fujian years, its response to undocumented Province, Fuzhou. There is no official statistics immigrants has always been one of strict that show the regional breakdowns of Chinese prevention. Japan does not have a precedent of visa overstayers. However, two observations amnesty. Moreover, due to the common point to Fujian as the major sending region for association of illegal stay with criminal overstayers. One observation is that 40.2 activities, especially after human smuggling percent of the Chinese who becamebecame rampant since the early 1990s, its undocumented in Japan came as students, police have been particularly adamant in including both university-bound (ryuugakusei) clearing the streets of undocumented and pre-university language studentsimmigrants. In December 2003, in order to (shuugakusei) (Ministry of Justice 2004). In make Japan into “a strong society against fact, over 80 percent of total student visa crimes,” the Japanese government, targeting overstayers were from China. And statistics “illegal immigrants as the hotbed of foreigner’s from the survey show that the rate of Fujian criminal activities,” launched a campaign to students who became undocumented was much reduce the number of illegal foreign residents higher than students from other regions in by half in five years. Since then, under the China (Liu-Farrer 2008). The other observation slogan of “internationalize by abiding rules is qualitative. In my fieldwork at both Chinese (ruru wo mamotte kokusaika),” a designated immigrant social dance halls and immigrant month has been set aside for and “anti-unlawful religious congregations I encountered many employment campaign”. The police regularly women from Fujian who were in Japan on a raid locations where illegal immigrants are spouse visa, but the marriage was in fact just a likely to concentrate, such as entertainment piece of paper. Many of these women had districts, construction sites, and some already overstayed their visas when I met residential areas. Plainclothes roam train them. stations and neighborhoods trying to identify suspects by appearance. Five years later, by In addition to visa overstayers, the Fuzhou area the end of 2008, the number of unlawful also produced a large number of clandestine stayers (fuhou zanryusha) was reduced by 48.5 immigrants. It was estimated that as many as percent from 220 thousands to 113 thousands.5 50,000 Chinese were smuggled into the US Among deported foreigners, Chinese every year (Chin 1999). Although it was not consistently ranked number one. likely to count the number of clandestine entrants into Japan, since 1990, 80 percent of Becoming undocumented therefore put illegal entrants into Japan apprehended by immigrants into a precarious situation in Japan. Japan’s Coast Guard were Chinese, and almost The fear of deportation not only prevented 2 8 | 26 | 1 APJ | JF illegal immigrants from seeking protection leisure and religious institutions in Tokyo from Japanese labor regulations, it also forced Metropolitan area since early 2002. The them to organize their daily life to minimize the statistical data in this paper came from a danger of encountering the police. Many sample survey of 218 Chinese immigrants, undocumented immigrants do not ride a which I designed and administered between bicycle, and scarcely go to see a doctor. Some May and December 2003, and statistical Fujian informants became tense when they reports published by the Immigration Office of walked in areas where they believed the Japan Ministry of Justice and Japan plainclothes patrolled. There was a fatalistic Immigration Association on foreign residents sentiment among the undocumentedand visa overstayers. immigrants. One interviewee ended our conversation saying, “Today I am here talking Causes of Undocumented Migration from to you. Tomorrow I don’t know where I will Fujian to Japan be.” Moreover, undocumented immigrants Researchers in US, Europe and China have heavily relied on their personal networks for documented the motives and methods of resources and services and therefore were migrants leaving Fujian Province, especially the vulnerable to exploitations by co-ethnics. several towns and villages around the capital Within ethnic networks, services such as city Fuzhou (Chin 1999, Kwang 1997, Pieke et introduction to a job usually came with a price. al. 2004, Liang 2001, Liang et al. 2008, Liu- Having a baby in Japan could easily cost an Farrer 2008). Economic motivations, undocumented couple over a million yen after psychological reasons and network effects are paying the hospital bills, the borrowed all suggested as causes for undocumented insurance card, and the fee for sending the 6 migration out of this region. These mechanisms baby back to China. In addition, are saliently present in the undocumented undocumented immigrants were likely to be migration from Fujian to Japan. However, in targets of criminal activities. The victims of the phenomenon of undocumented migration in crimes committed by Chinese were often other Japan, unique patterns of economic causes and Chinese. Undocumented immigrants were too network effects are observed: these are debt- afraid to report threats and damages. driven illicit border entry and network-induced student visa overstaying. In this section, I Given the harsh situations an undocumented elaborate on the causes for migration from immigrant faces, why have so many Fujian Fujian to Japan, introducing both the people come to Japan clandestinely ormechanisms that are considered common to all relinquished their legal status in Japan? This clandestine migration out of this region and article explores the causes of undocumented phenomena that are particular to migration migration from Fujian to Japan, presents the into Japan. ethical frameworks within which Fujian undocumented migrants operate, and discusses Economic motivation: capital and debts different concepts of rights involved in the act of irregular migration. Economically, there is not sufficient arable land in Fujian for each productive person. Costal This study is based primarily on 47 in-depth people used to fish, but in recent years diesel interviews with immigrants from Fujianfuel became increasingly expensive making Province between May 2004 and February fishing unprofitable. In some areas, the coastal 2005 in Kanto area, Japan and Fujian, China. I area